Saturday, 23 September 2017

Off To Save a Life

Today Louise and I will once again donate blood. It is the
one thing that I do which insures that I will actually save someone’s life.

Sure I can simply stop talking and whoever I am with will
think they have been saved from a fate worse than death, but that isn’t real
death. Well…probably not.

The blood donor clinic has moved from its old location to
new digs right downtown. I have been assured that there will be ample free
underground parking available. Normally I wouldn’t believe it, but the nurse
telling me was pretty pissed off because the employees didn’t get free parking
so the move to them is like taking a pay cut. Who doesn’t like to take a pay
cut? My worry is that the good nurses (the ones that can find a vein) will look
for work elsewhere and I will literally get stuck with a cross eyed nurse with
Parkinson’s. I will let you know how things work out today.

So, since it is a relatively early appointment and I don’t
like to be late for anything, we have to get up around 7:30AM. I need to wash and dress, eat and have some drink
with caffeine in it and give myself time enough to shake the cobwebs from my
mind. There is also an online questionnaire that needs filling out and printing
so that it needn’t be filled out at the clinic. I liked filling it out at the
clinic, but I suppose I shouldn’t stand in the way of progress. The Q-Pass can
somehow be put on my smart phone, but my smart phone has a less than smart
owner so I need to print off the pass. It all takes time.

I should have set the alarm and I did mean to. However I
didn’t.

I put on a jesters hat and went to
tuck the kids in for their afternoon nap. Maegan and Brendan were still in
cribs and Arwen had graduated to the big girl bed. They all smiled a sleepy
smile at silly daddy and their eyes closed while they entered dreamland. I
should have started to clean up the house or at least get prepared for the
onslaught when the kids woke up, but instead I lay down for a short rest. I
could hear water dripping or was it the dog’s breathing? I tried to ignore it,
but the rhythmic sound continued. Try as I might, no matter how tight I shut my
eyes the sound continued. I got out of bed and when I got to the hallway there
was a large mouse. I had never seen a mouse that was three feet long before and
usually mice tend to run away from humans, but this one seemed angry and bent
on revenge. I had killed a few mice in recent days, but they broke the unspoken
agreement where they live outside and I live inside. The big mouse didn’t
agree. I explained that we had to go and give blood today and that the family
would be over tomorrow, so today wasn’t a good day for it to kill us since when
we were found dead or missing an exterminator would be called. Thankfully, mice
aren’t very smart, even very large mice.

I have no idea what the dream means, but it did wake me up
plenty early. If tonight I hear water dripping or the dog breathing I will send
Louise out to check on it.